Flames Reportedly Denying Teams Permission To Speak To Brad Treliving
When the Flames and Brad Treliving parted ways at the end of the regular season, it seemed likely that his name would surface in the rumor mill before too long, especially with there being a vacancy in Pittsburgh while other teams have been looking to add to their front offices. However, that hasn’t been the case.
That said, there appears to be a reason why Treliving’s name hasn’t come up as Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli reports (Twitter link) that the Flames do not want to grant other organizations permission to speak to Treliving until his contract expires. Even though the announcement that he wouldn’t be back with Calgary came in mid-April, his deal technically doesn’t come to an end until June 30th.
This is a technicality that comes up many times when executives or coaches are no longer with a team (either by firing or, as has come up more recently, mutually parted ways). Any other team that wants to interview that person officially still has to get permission to speak to them from the organization they no longer work for. That generally happens without a hitch but as Calgary is still paying Treliving, the Flames are within their rights to do this.
It’s possible that this has to do with the fact that the draft is coming up next month. Having worked for the Flames throughout the season, Treliving would have been a part of scouting meetings and Calgary might not want to let any information about their strategy, scouting reports, or things they’ve learned about draft-eligible players get to another team this close to the draft.
While an inquiring team – Pittsburgh or otherwise – could make a request to interview with the caveat that Treliving wouldn’t begin in his new role until after the draft, that’s not necessarily the easiest promise to make with there being so little time between the end of the draft and the opening of the free agent market. The draft finishes up on June 29th and the new league year begins less than 48 hours later which doesn’t leave much time for Treliving to join an organization and be ready to have an influential role when the free agent frenzy begins. Similarly, another team could ask to interview Treliving with a promise that he won’t be involved in the draft but that’s quite difficult to enforce.
Accordingly, assuming that Flames ownership doesn’t have a change of heart in the coming weeks, Treliving won’t be able to pursue a new position until the 2023-24 league year opens up in July. At that point, it’s fair to wonder if there will be a spot for him to pursue at that time. Last month, his decision to leave Calgary raised some eyebrows. Now, the delayed process of that actually happening is also drawing some attention.
Devils Notes: Nemec, Blackwood, Schmid, Hischier
Devils defenseman Simon Nemec is expected to join Slovakia for the World Championship, reports Dennik Sports’ Tomas Prokop. The 19-year-old was the second-overall pick last year and had a strong post-draft campaign, picking up 12 goals and 22 assists in 65 games with AHL Utica. He also was Slovakia’s captain at the World Juniors while picking up five points in as many contests. Nemec was among New Jersey’s ‘Black Ace’ recalls once Utica’s season came to an end which prevented him from joining the Slovak roster early but now that they have been eliminated, he’s now free to participate in the tournament.
More from New Jersey:
- Goaltender Mackenzie Blackwood revealed in his end-of-season interview (video link) that he dealt with a groin and an MCL injury during the season. It was a disappointing year for the 26-year-old who was limited to 22 appearances where he struggled, posting a 3.20 GAA with a save percentage of just .893. The end result was him slipping to third on the depth chart down the stretch. Blackwood is a pending restricted free agent with arbitration eligibility while being owed a $3.36MM qualifying offer. With how his season ended, it’s hard to imagine New Jersey will make him that offer; if they don’t, he’ll become an unrestricted free agent this summer unless they can trade his rights to someone who will tender him at that price tag.
- Meanwhile, in his scrum (video link), goaltender Akira Schmid indicated that he hasn’t decided if he’ll join Switzerland at the Worlds. The 23-year-old posted a 2.13 GAA and a .922 SV% in 18 NHL appearances this season, moving him into the starting role for the playoffs (while pushing Blackwood to third-string status). He’s signed for one more year on his entry-level deal and as things stand, he should be a full-timer with New Jersey next season after splitting time between them and AHL Utica in 2022-23.
- While Schmid is uncertain about playing for Switzerland, captain Nico Hischier is less hesitant as NHL.com’s Mike Morreale relays (Twitter link) that the center is expected to join the Swiss squad once interviewing is finished in New Jersey. Hischier had a career year this season, reaching the 30-goal and 80-point marks for the first time. However, he was quieter in the playoffs, scoring just once in 12 games although he managed to collect six assists as well.
Islanders Expected To Offer Lou Lamoriello Contract Extension
With the contract of general manager Lou Lamoriello believed to be expiring at the end of next month, some had wondered if the time was right to make a change in the front office. However, Newsday’s Andrew Gross reports that after some deliberation, that will not be the case as the team has decided to offer the 80-year-old a three-year contract extension.
Lamoriello has been at the helm in New York for the last five seasons with the team making four playoff appearances during that stretch, highlighted by a trip to the Conference Final in the bubble in 2020. However, they’ve failed to win a playoff series the last two years so with his contract expiring, there was a logical jumping point to make a change if they wanted to.
Despite the lack of postseason success the last couple of seasons, that hasn’t stopped Lamoriello from acting like a win-now GM. Last year at the draft, he moved their first-round pick to Montreal to pick up defenseman Alexander Romanov. Then, back in February, he moved their first-rounder for next month’s draft along with Anthony Beauvillier and prospect Aatu Raty to Vancouver for Bo Horvat before signing the center to a long-term extension. Lamoriello also inked Mathew Barzal to an eight-year, $73.2MM extension that will kick in next season.
At the moment, the Islanders are a veteran-laden team that has been tight to the salary cap for the last few years, a trend that’s likely to continue next season as they have barely $6MM in cap room this summer, per CapFriendly. With that money, they need to sign a backup goalie as Semyon Varlamov is a pending UFA while they’d also likely want to bring wingers Zach Parise and Pierre Engvall back, along with blueliner Scott Mayfield. Those three are also set to hit the open market in July and clearly, the cap room they have is nowhere near enough to re-sign them all.
Accordingly, creating cap space will be at the top of Lamoriello’s to-do list this summer. Josh Bailey and his $5MM price tag is someone the team would likely want to move on from but doing so would require incentivizing a team to do so. However, their prospect pool has taken a hit lately while they only have one pick in the top 110 next month which doesn’t exactly give them a surplus of assets with which to use to try to entice someone to give them that cap room.
Based on Gross’ report, it appears that Lamoriello is going to get a vote of confidence from the team, one that will likely extend to first-year head coach Lane Lambert as well. But the veteran manager is going to have a lot to try to accomplish in terms of re-signing his free agents, creating cap room, and doing so while trying to get a little younger and quicker while trying to restock a dwindling prospect pool at the same time. That’s a tall task for any general manager but the Islanders feel that Lamoriello will be up to the challenge.
Panthers RFA Logan Hutsko Signs In Sweden
After a pair of seasons in the minors, Panthers prospect Logan Hutsko has opted for a change of scenery. The forward has signed a two-year contract with IK Oskarshamn of the SHL, per a team release.
The 24-year-old was a third-round pick by Florida back in 2018 (89th overall) but only has a couple of years of pro experience under his belt since he played a full four years at Boston College. Hutsko had a good first season in the minors last year with 38 points in 71 games but injuries limited him to just 43 appearances in 2022-23 where he was fairly productive with 27 points. That makes his decision to leave a little surprising but the fact that he wasn’t among Florida’s ‘Black Ace’ promotions earlier this month probably didn’t help things.
Florida can still control Hutsko through 2026 and with this deal running through the end of the 2024-25 campaign, it seems likely that they will still tender him a qualifying offer this summer to retain his rights. In the meantime, they’ll hope that Hutsko can take another step in his development in Sweden and then assess if he’s worth bringing back in a couple of years.
Golden Knights UFA Sakari Manninen Signs In Switzerland
A year ago, center Sakari Manninen was coming off an impressive season in the KHL plus a strong showing at the World Championship, helping him earn a one-year, one-way deal with Vegas with the hopes that he could push for some playing time with the Golden Knights this season. However, that didn’t happen and as a result, he’s heading back overseas as Geneve-Servette of the Swiss NLA announced that they’ve signed Manninen to a one-year deal.
The 31-year-old got a fairly long look with Vegas in the preseason, getting into four games before being one of their final cuts. The expectation was that he’d be back up once injuries arose but others got that opportunity instead. Manninen had a fairly successful season with the Silver Knights, picking up 40 points in 53 games to finish third on Henderson in scoring but somewhat surprisingly, he wasn’t among their list of ‘Black Ace’ recalls once the AHL campaign came to an end.
While Manninen could have waited for NHL free agency in July to see if another team might be interested in giving him an opportunity in North America, he’s instead opting to give the top division in Switzerland a try having already played in the top leagues in Finland, Sweden, and Russia. At his age and with him not getting into a game with Vegas this season, it seems unlikely that Manninen will find himself back on the NHL radar in the future.
San Jose Sharks Prospect Benjamin Gaudreau To Re-Enter Draft
05/10/23: Gaudreau’s agent, Eddie Mio of Octagon Sports Management, added some clarity to Gaudreau’s situation today. He told Sheng Peng of San Jose Hockey Now that Gaudreau has decided to re-enter the draft and not sign an entry-level contract with the Sharks.
The stated reason was “because of what is developing with their goaltending prospects,” which could be a reference to the Sharks’ current situation with Chrona, Romanov, and Makiniemi already in their system. For what it’s worth, Mio disputed that notion saying “I’m confident in Ben, that he would have prevailed. We’re not afraid of competition. Just didn’t feel like a good fit.” So instead of signing with the Sharks, the 20-year-old 2021 third-rounder will now re-enter the draft process.
05/09/23: The June 1st deadline to sign prospects drafted from the CHL in 2021 is fast approaching and while many players unsigned at this point are likely going to be let go, not every team has made a final decision about whether they’ll be signing their players. That appears to be the case in San Jose as GM Mike Grier told reporters including Curtis Pashelka of The Mercury News (Twitter link) that they’ve yet to decide if they’ll sign goalie prospect Benjamin Gaudreau. A final decision will be made in consultation with Director of Goaltending Evgeni Nabokov and Goalie Coach Thomas Speer over the next couple of weeks.
The 20-year-old was a third-round pick (81st overall) back in 2021 and has spent his entire major junior career with OHL Sarnia, becoming their clear starter over the last two years. Gaudreau played in 44 games with the Sting this season, posting a 3.07 GAA and a .889 SV%, ranking him ninth and 20th league-wide, respectively. Gaudreau was also named to Canada’s team for the World Juniors; he got into a pair of games but posted a .828 SV% in those appearances.
On the surface, Gaudreau’s numbers, while not the strongest, are good enough to typically earn an entry-level deal. However, San Jose will have two other prospects vying for playing time in the minors next season in Magnus Chrona and Georgi Romanov while it’s likely that they’ll want to re-sign prospect Eetu Makiniemi as well. That doesn’t leave much room for someone like Gaudreau to come in and get some playing time. If they decide that they aren’t going to sign him, the Sharks could be able to flip Gaudreau’s rights for a late-round pick to at least get some value from that selection.
Offseason Checklist: Washington Capitals
The offseason has arrived for half of the league’s teams that aren’t taking part in the playoffs plus those that were eliminated early. It’s time to examine what they will need to accomplish over the coming months. Next up is a look at Washington.
For the majority of Alex Ovechkin’s time in Washington, the Capitals have been a team that has been in the thick of the playoff hunt. It looked like that would continue through the first half of the season before they completely bottomed out down the stretch. It seems unlikely that Washington will engage in a rebuild while Ovechkin is around so GM Brian MacLellan will be tasked with getting his veteran core back into the thick of things in 2023-24. Here are some items that will be on his to-do list in the coming months.
Hire A Head Coach
First things first. After mutually parting ways with veteran bench boss Peter Laviolette, the Capitals need to find a new head coach. Generally speaking, a veteran-laden team will often want to have an experienced coach with a track record of getting short-term success. There are some options out there if they opt to go that route including Gerard Gallant, Claude Julien, and even former Washington coach Bruce Boudreau. Andrew Brunette, a current New Jersey assistant, doesn’t have as long of a track record as the others but could garner some consideration.
However, there will be plenty of speculation that will link them to Toronto assistant coach Spencer Carbery. The 41-year-old has long ties to the Capitals organization, going back to his days coaching their ECHL and AHL affiliates before leaving for the Maple Leafs two years ago. Carbery is viewed as an up-and-coming coach and given MacLellan’s familiarity with him, it’s reasonable to infer that he’ll be a strong candidate. Washington has also been linked to Lightning assistant Jeff Halpern so even with a veteran roster, they’ll be casting a wide net to find their next head coach.
Sort Out Kuznetsov’s Future
It’s not often that a team that’s expected to try to be in the playoff mix the following season looks into the possibility of trading its number one center but it certainly feels like MacLellan is going to have to look into doing so. A report from Match TV in Russia back in March suggested that Evgeny Kuznetsov twice requested a trade with a move clearly not coming to fruition. Last month, it was revealed that he changed agents, further adding fuel to that fire.
The 30-year-old had one of his best seasons in 2021-22, picking up 54 assists and 78 points in 79 regular season games while picking up five points in their first-round exit. However, he failed to carry that over this year with his point-per-game rate dropping to 0.68, the second-lowest over his nine full NHL seasons. Along the way, he started to lose some playing time to Dylan Strome who, with a five-year, $25MM extension in hand, is now entrenched as a big part of Washington’s core moving forward.
Of course, even if Kuznetsov wants to be moved, it’s something that’s easier said than done. Notwithstanding his partial trade protection, he has two years remaining on his contract which carries a $7.8MM AAV. At his level of production from 2021-22, he’s worth that money. At this season’s production, however, it’s a considerable overpayment. What helps to mitigate the cap hit somewhat is that it’s a shorter-term agreement than what most centers will command in free agency. A team looking for a short-term stopgap might prefer a trade for Kuznetsov over giving someone else a cheaper but longer-term commitment.
That all said, moving Kuznetsov would also open up a significant hole down the middle, especially with Nicklas Backstrom no longer the high-end playmaker he once was and Strome not being a true top middleman. If they decide to rebuild, it’s not as much of a concern but if they are looking to compete for a playoff spot next season, they will need to find a way to convince Kuznetsov that staying is the best idea or find a way to bring back a top-six center either as part of the trade return or in another swap.
Create Cap Flexibility
Even after selling at the trade deadline, cap space is at a premium for the Capitals this summer after handing out new, more expensive deals to wingers Sonny Milano and Nicolas Aube-Kubel plus defensemen Nick Jensen and Trevor van Riemsdyk. The end result is an increase in spending by $4.975MM based on their cap hits next season compared to 2022-23. Accordingly, Washington enters the summer with just over $7.3MM in cap room, per CapFriendly, assuming that the Upper Limit only goes up by $1MM as expected.
A decent chunk of that remaining money will go toward re-signing RFA blueliner Martin Fehervary and after the 23-year-old logged 20 minutes a night this season, there’s a good chance his next deal will pass the $2MM mark. It’s also likely that they’d like to re-sign pending UFA winger Connor Brown who was limited to just four games before suffering a season-ending ACL tear. The injury might limit Brown’s market but even so, someone’s likely to offer at least a one-year, ‘show me’ deal around the $3.6MM cap charge he had on this now-expiring deal. Re-sign those two and there might not even be enough to round out the roster with players on minimum-salaried contracts.
Again, a Kuznetsov trade could help on that front but if they don’t go that route, they will have to find other ways to free up cap space. Moving winger Anthony Mantha and his $5.7MM cap charge would help but after another tough season, his deal isn’t one that teams will be lining up to acquire. T.J. Oshie has two years left at $5.75MM but at the age of 36 and partial no-trade protection, that’s not an easy move to make either. But if the Capitals want to add anyone of consequence this summer, they’re going to need to free up some cap room to make that happen.
Work On Wilson Extension
This season was a bit of an up-and-down year for winger Tom Wilson who missed the first half of the year after recovering from offseason ACL surgery. When he was in the lineup, however, he was relatively productive, notching 13 goals in just 33 games, a 32-goal pace which was well above his career rates. While he has a checkered history with the Department of Player Safety, Wilson has also been one of the most prominent power forwards in the league in recent years with his current deal often serving as a benchmark for deals for similar players in recent years.
That contract, a six-year, $31MM agreement, has just one year remaining on it which makes him eligible to sign an extension starting in July. Wilson’s offensive production on this deal has been decent – 93 goals and 98 assists in 289 games – but, as it was before, offense alone won’t dictate the price of this next agreement. He’ll be 30 when his next deal kicks in, meaning that a max-term extension of eight years could very well be on the table. While eight years for a power forward might not sound great, it stands to reason that an agreement of that length could also help to keep the AAV of the deal a little lower.
Both Wilson and MacLellan have made it clear that they want to get a new deal in place. They’ll have plenty of time this summer to see if they find a contract that both sides are happy with and ensure that a key part of their forward group will be sticking around for the long haul.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Matt Tomkins Terminates SHL Contract, Expected To Sign NHL Deal
Former Blackhawks prospect Matt Tomkins decided back in 2021 that it was time to try his hand at playing overseas. However, he didn’t lose his desire to try to play in the NHL and it appears he’ll get another chance at that opportunity as Farjestad of the SHL announced that the netminder has terminated the final year of his deal with them and is expected to sign an NHL contract with an undisclosed team for next season.
The 28-year-old was a seventh-round pick by Chicago back in 2012 and spent four years in their system, never advancing past the AHL level where he had a 3.35 GAA and a .896 SV% in 36 contests. After his contract expired following the 2020-21 campaign, he went overseas, a decision that worked out well for him.
In 2021-22, Tomkins earned a spot on Canada’s roster for the Olympics where he got into three games before serving as their third-string goalie at the Worlds, making one appearance. Those opportunities came on the heels of a strong season with Frolunda where he had a 2.46 GAA and a .908 SV% in 33 games. This past season with Farjestad, his numbers were quite similar, checking in at 2.53 and .911, respectively while splitting time with Maple Leafs prospect Dennis Hildeby.
Considering his track record thus far, it seems reasonable to suggest that Tomkins will be getting a two-way contract wherever he winds up signing. It’s unlikely that he’ll be in the mix for an NHL roster spot in training camp but if he can lock down a regular role in the minors, he could play himself into the recall mix when injuries arise. That opportunity appears to be too good for him to pass up on, even if it means leaving what would have been a strong situation with Farjestad where he was in line to be the full-fledged starter with Hildeby leaving for North America early last month.
Avalanche Issue Several Injury Updates
Colorado was dealt a serious blow for next season earlier today when it was announced that captain Gabriel Landeskog would miss all of 2023-24 and will be undergoing a cartilage transplant in his surgically-repaired knee. Speaking with reporters today (video link), GM Chris MacFarland issued several other injury updates.
- Winger Andrew Cogliano, who suffered a fractured neck in their opening-round loss to Seattle, is not expected to need surgery. The veteran, who also was dealing with an AC sprain, is expected to have a recovery timeline of six-to-eight weeks, meaning he should be fully recovered before reaching unrestricted free agency in July. The 35-year-old potted ten goals and nine assists in 79 games for the Avs this season.
- Winger Artturi Lehkonen, who recovered from a broken finger in time for the playoffs, sustained a broken toe during the series against the Kraken. The 27-year-old was able to play through the injury and finished fourth in scoring in the series with three goals and three assists. Lehkonen, who had a career year during the season with 20 goals and 31 assists, will not suit up at the upcoming World Championship due to the injury.
- Goaltender Pavel Francouz has undergone surgery to repair an adductor injury but is expected to be fully ready for training camp in the fall. The 32-year-old dealt with lower-body trouble during the season which limited him to just 16 games where he posted a 2.61 GAA and a .915 SV%.
- Defenseman Josh Manson had a procedure done last week after being sidelined with a lower-body injury of his own during the series. He, too, is expected to be ready in time for training camp. Manson had an injury-riddled first full campaign with the Avalanche and was limited to just 27 games during the regular season before missing the final two playoff contests.
Canadiens UFA Frederic Allard Signs In Sweden
Rather than see what might come up in free agency this summer, Canadiens pending UFA defenseman Frederic Allard has found his next team as Lulea of the SHL announced that they’ve signed the rearguard to a two-year contract.
The 25-year-old played in three games with Montreal this season after being acquired from Los Angeles at the trade deadline in exchange for AHL forward Nate Schnarr. However, Allard only has one other NHL appearance under his belt, that coming back in 2021 with Nashville, the team that drafted him in the third round back in 2016.
For the majority of his pro career, Allard has played at the AHL level, getting into 297 games over six seasons with affiliates of the Predators, Kings, and Canadiens. Over that stretch, he has 23 goals and 91 assists along with 114 penalty minutes while chipping in with three goals and three helpers in 11 playoff contests.
While Allard certainly would have had NHL offers this summer, they almost certainly would have been of the two-way variety with an eye on him continuing to play in the minors. Instead, he’s decided that it’s time for a change and will try his hand overseas. As he has not played in enough AHL contests to qualify for full veteran status, there should be interest in Allard down the road if he decides to give it another go at some point in North America.